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Sep 17, 2015

In February 2009, around Valentine's Day, Chad the Satyr's housemate and I broke up, and I was ready to start dating and hooking up again.

I was getting tired of the Gang of Twelve, the guys in Upstate New York who all had dated each other over the years and knew each other's secrets and gossipped constantly. So although I continued accepting dates with the Klingon, the Sword Swallower, and the Pitcher with a Secret Move, I started looking at other guys.

Like the water man.

That spring water coolers were all the rage. Tap water was unsafe, or at least the media said so, so everybody installed a water cooler in the kitchen, with a 5-gallon, 40-pound tank that had to be changed every week.

It was tricky changing the tanks yourself without splashing water all over, so the water companies offered a service whereby "the water man" would knock on your door once a week with a new bottle to replace the old.

They hired only the most muscular guys for the job, and my water guy, Pete, was no exception: in his 30s, short, dark-haired, with a v-shaped torso, an oval face and big hands. And a wedding ring.

None of the Gang of Twelve had ever heard of him.

Not gay.

Still, every Wednesday afternoon, when Pete arrived with my water, we chatted a little longer than usual, made a little extra eye contact. Sometimes I "accidentally" had my shirt off to see if his eyes widened.

It's 8 hours by train from Antwerp to Prague, capital of the Czech Republic, but worth it.

Prague is one of the most beautiful cities in Europe. Try the view from Charles Bridge at night, looking toward the Mala Strana, with the castle lit up.

It has a thriving gay community.

A major porn industry, which has gotten some criticism for exploiting barely-legal models.

And more statues of naked men than any other city in the world. Here are the top ten public penises:

1.-2. This man and his twin are urinating on a map of the Czech Republic outside the Kafka Museum. As the water flows, their penises move up and down as if they are becoming aroused. Quite a spectacle (By the way, Franz Kafka had rather a substantial gay connection).

3. This naked boy stands at the entrance of the Supreme Burgrave's House (now a Toy Museum). You're supposed to rub his penis for luck.

4. The Memorial to the Victims of Communism, seven statues of men in decay, symbolizes the many political prisoners who were forced into exile or killed. But they're definitely naked.

5.-6. The gardens at Wallenstein Palace has a row of Romanesque statues, like this Perseus with his penis broken off.

Sep 15, 2015

As an undergrad Modern Languages major, I studied Spanish, French, German, and Greek. In grad school in Comparative Literature, I studied Italian, Russian, and Turkish. Since then, I've studied several other languages. Of course, I didn't get far in most, and they fade away over time; today, about all I can get by in are the original Spanish, French, and German.

But I'm still interested in languages, particularly isolates, the remnants of ancient language families that have somehow managed to avoid the encroachment of economically-superior English, Spanish, Urdu, Chinese, or Arabic.

Actually, after my execrable dating experience with Ari the Linguist, I don't really want to learn the languages; I just want to meet men who speak a language unlike any other in the world, and maybe learn a few new words for penis or My hotel is nearby.

1. Burushaski: 87,000 speakers in mountains of far northern Pakistan, near the borders of China and Tajikstan.

Their valley, Hunza, was the source of the Shangri-La legend. Travelers said that they had no wars or disputes, and eternal youth. So this Burushaski gym rat could be over 100. He's had a shipen since he was about 20; before that, it was a sushun.Tash chom means pull, sex appeal, and to find someone to spend the night with.

2. Tarascan (Purepecha), the remnants of an empire that threatened the Aztecs in precolonial Mexico, now has 240,000 speakers in Michioacan.

Sep 13, 2015

Observant Jews often face conundrums about everyday activities. You can't work on the Sabbath; does that include pushing elevator buttons? You need separate sets of dishes for dairy products and meat: what about eating in a restaurant, where the dishes are all mixed up?

When I was growing up Nazarene, we faced similar conundrums. Preachers and Sunday school teachers had to apply the law with the sagacity of a Talmudic scholar.

You can't work on Sunday.
1. Does that include yardwork? Yes. What about mowing the lawn on a riding mower? Yes.

2. Does it include performing CPR on someone who has had a heart attack? No.

3. What if you work in a restaurant where your schedule occasionally requires you to work on Sunday? Politely refuse, and if you are forced, quit.

You can't go anywhere near alcohol.

1. What if your college roommate wants to drink in the room? Change roommates. He's evil.

2. What about if alcohol is being served in one room of the building, but not in the others? Don't go within ten feet.

3. Can you take a job in a drug store that sells beer, among other things? No.

You can't dance, not even in the "guise of folk dancing or physical education class."

1. Can you watch folk dancing? No.

2. What about jazzercise, a very popular exercise of the 1970s? No.

3. Can you just sway? No

You can't go to a movie theater.

1. Can you go into a theater if your car broke down and you need a telephone? No.

2. What about if it's a school field trip? No.

3. What about a movie on tv? No.

As a result, I was in a movie theater only a few times before college, and then always with guilt and fear as I waited for the heavens to open and God to strike me dead.

But my Cousin Buster found an loophole.

Buster lived in the trailer in the deep woods, next to my grandfather's house just outside Garrett, Indiana. His parents were lapsed Baptists, but he went to a Nazarene church and learned the same restrictions that I did.

The summer after sixth grade, when we were visiting, he said "There's a monster movie marathon playing at the Drive-In. Let's go."

"A drive in theater?" I didn't remember any rule about that, but I still dubious. There was no building, just a field, but there was still a big screen. "You're still watching a movie."

He grinned. "Uh-uh. Movies have pictures and sounds. We're just going to see the picture. With a monster movie, it doesn't matter what they're saying, anyway."

It wasn't the building or the big screen, because we couldn't watch movies at home on tv, either. It must be the combination of pictures and sound!

"No sound, no movie," I said. "It might work. But how are we going to do that? Leave the little speaker thing off the car?"

"Just wait and see."

Buster told our parents that we were going to go star-gazing, and we rode our bikes down the dusty country roads to Route 6, to the theater. But instead of going inside, we walked our bikes across a field of summer corn to a little knoll beyond last row of cars. The screen was far away, but still visible, especially with binoculars.

We lay on blankets on the rough ground, shivering in the breeze, eating potato chips and watching something about Frankenstein fighting Godzilla.

And we managed to see a movie without getting God mad, unless He was miffed by the lying to our parents, trespassing, and theft.

Best night ever.

What? You were expecting a hookup? I did think about things other than cute guys once in a while when I was a kid.

When Gay Was Unspoken

Beefcake, male bonding, and gay symbolism in the movies, tv programs, books, toys, and comics of a Baby Boomer childhood. Some autobiographical stories and stories about beefcake around the world.

Note: Most posts are about how gay people can find meaning in homophobic or heterosexist texts. If you don't want to hear about that, stay away. No profanity, insults, anti-gay slurs, name-calling,or homophobia allowed. You will be blocked, and comments on the post will be disabled.